Dubai SME, the agency of the Department of Economic Development (DED) in Dubai mandated to develop the small and medium enterprise (SME) sector, held awareness workshops for participants of the Young Entrepreneur Competition (YEC 2013) to inspire and enable them to win the competition.

The workshops were aimed to help the students learn how to develop their concept, team and project. The topics discussed in the workshops included Understanding entrepreneurship; Characteristics of a successful entrepreneur; Introduction in understanding business plan types and Ways of critical thinking. Over 500 students attended the workshops held in Dubai.

YEC 2013 aims to inspire entrepreneurial spirit among students in the public and private secondary schools and universities across the UAE. The competition is an opportunity for participants to test-launch their entrepreneurial ideas and skills in a real world of business and also learn the basic principles of starting and operating a business.

Participants also learned about Thinking from various perspectives; Imaginative thinking; Characteristics of creative entrepreneurs; Barriers affecting creativity; Team building from small and medium enterprises; Roles of team members; Preparing young entrepreneurs to interact within a team; Effective communication and its impact on team building; Understanding improved techniques in customer service; Dealing with different types of customers, Understanding sales & personal sales; Role of an efficient sales man in the SME sector, Characteristics of a successful sales man, and the Sales process.

“The most distinguishing feature of YEC is its focus on bringing students to experience the real world of business and grooming them to be knowledgeable and successful entrepreneurs. Participants in the competition go through a series of skill development and learning processes, which helps them think, perform and excel like a competent entrepreneur,” commented Nisrin Mohammed Al Harmoodi, General Coordinator of YEC.

Al Harmoodi added that the turnout at the workshop validated estimates that YEC 2013 may attract not less than 1,000 projects, up 15 per cent from last year. We are co-ordinating with all stakeholders in the social and education sector, including the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Social Affairs to allow as many students as possible to benefit from YEC”.

The competition has been expanded this year to Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah too, in addition to Dubai, to allow students across the UAE to be part of the event. High school (grade 10) and university students in the 15-25 age group can participate in the event. The maximum number of students in each project should not exceed four. A project team can have students from different schools, colleges or universities.

A four-day exhibition of YEC 2013 projects will be held in Abu Dhabi (3-6 April), Ras Al Khaimah (10-13 April) and in Dubai (17-20 April). Students from Dubai, Sharjah and Ajman will participate in the Dubai exhibition while the Abu Dhabi event will have participants from Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. The Ras Al Khaimah event is for participants from Ras Al Khaimah, Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah.